You can’t beat classic movies, but you can’t find them all that well either. Watching classics like Casablanca and Vertigo has become a trickier task in the age of streaming. So, what happened to the oldies? Here is why it’s hard to find classic movies and how to hunt them down.

The Importance of Old Films

We might not have today’s modern film if it weren’t for classic movies. Where would the Scream franchise be if it didn’t have a history of slasher films to satirize? Kill Bill might not have been made if the old Japanese revenge film, Lady Snowblood, hadn’t inspired Quentin Tarantino. Even the Barbie movie draws heavy inspiration from colorful musical classics like Singin’ in the Rain and An American in Paris.

But it’s more than just learning about the origins of inspiration. Old films just have a unique quality to how they’re made. From the type of film stock to the eras they capture, classic movies provide a snapshot of history in more ways than one.

Shelving Old Films

There’s nothing more disheartening for a movie fan to navigate to Netflix’s classic movies tab and see only 24 choices. At one point, Netflix was home to a broader selection of older films. But those days are long gone, replaced with Netflix’s latest movie of the week.

The best way streaming services can keep viewers coming back is by hosting a film you can’t get anywhere else. While Netflix might have the streaming rights to a classic like Do the Right Thing, it could easily shift over to Prime Video next month. New films made specifically for these platforms are less likely to migrate, especially since Netflix would want to show off newer films with their upgraded HDR.

Like most weird corporate decisions, the discounting of the old was a financial move. Netflix would much rather its audience watch their $320 million adventure film, The Electric State, than Spike Lee’s evergreen picture on race relations, which cost them a pittance in broadcast rights. They also probably don’t want you to compare how Lee made a far better film for only $6 million in the late 1980s, considering how terrible Netflix’s original films have been despite their views.

Scene of Marlon Brando drinking on the floor from Last Tango in Paris.

But it’s not just Netflix that has a drought of the classics. Prime Video doesn’t even have a classic movie genre section, making you scroll through several rows before finding MGM classics. While the row does include such classics as the award-winning Last Tango in Paris, it’s clear that Prime is less likely to push these oldies to the top of the page.

Paramount+ and Peacock don’t even have classic movie tabs. Hulu has a classic movie genre, but its selection is even more disappointing than that of Netflix. The app only has six films in the category, with the oldest being 1977’s Star Wars: A New Hope. Depending on your cutoff for classics, Hulu is barren.

Seeking Out Classic Movies

With so many movies a few remote taps away, we tend to forget the convenience of it all. Film students of today will never endure the hunt for a VHS copy of The Big Sleep when assigned to watch it for class. While searching through the aisles of classics had its charms, the annoyance of the film being rented out is not nostalgic.

The shift to digital has made films easier to find, but there’s still a hunt to be had. The problem is that it seems to be the only way to find classics. It used to be that films not on streaming could be tracked down on home video. However, with Target and Best Buy having completely dropped their DVD and Blu-ray sections, tracking down old favorites is much less convenient, though you can still find physical media if you know where to look at thrift and outlet stores.

Online video has made it easier to find films, and there is a benefit to how Google’s interface displays where to watch films. A common problem is that some classics are not on streaming apps and are only available to rent on video-on-demand. This presents a problem because, let’s face it, people are less likely to give a movie a shot if they have to pay for it.

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That belongs in a museum!

So, Where Are All the Classics?

Seeking out classic movies on streaming requires some digging, but you won’t have to venture too far. If you’ve got Max, a treasure trove of classic films is already waiting for you in the Turner Classic Movies hub. Longtime classic movie buffs will be happy to know the cable channel still has a place on Max.

There’s also more than one option for finding classics. While Max has international classics like the Japanese epic Seven Samurai and the Soviet-era sci-fi of Stalker, you can also find these titles on The Criterion Channel (and many more films by Akira Kurosawa and Andrei Tarkovsky.)

A shot of the samurai warriors from the film Seven Samurai.

The Criterion Channel is the ideal app for classic film buffs, not just for its bigger selection. Much like the distributor’s physical releases, there are plenty of special features like interviews, video essays, and audio commentaries. For those who want the feeling restored of browsing classic DVDs loaded with informative extras, The Criterion Channel might be the closest you’ll get to that in a virtual experience.

Even those on a budget don’t have to look far for classics. Free ad-based services like Tubi and Pluto TV have a host of classic Westerns, like The Magnificent Seven, which was inspired by Seven Samurai. There are plenty of revered classics on these apps that you don’t have to settle for low-quality public domain videos.

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Don’t sleep on this.

With too many movies to keep up with nowadays, it’s comforting to know that the classics are still on streaming. You might not find them in abundance on the bigger services, but they’re worth seeking on the streaming channels mentioned here. Whether you’re after comfort or education, classic movies are a refreshing retreat to an age when streaming had a much different definition.